Nothing sets friends and family at each others’ throats more than a fight over money. Make it a dispute over a will and the fun really begins. As a insurance agent and financial planner for many years, I can attest to the change in attitude that typically accompanies those in the next generation when someone with resources dies.

From a personal standpoint, I am an only child, which meant that I didn’t have to consult with any siblings when my parents passed away. I had to do it all but there was nobody there to criticize me. Time and again when working with clients, they are absolute in their belief that the kids will still like each other when the dust settles. But it rarely ever happens without hard feelings. Sometimes, they no longer speak with each other.

The emotions that bubble up in estate disputes are understandably raw. Make it about the property of a famous person and it can get really crazy. A minor celebrity (see Gary Coleman) with pennies to his name can generate a court battle worthy of a billionaire (see Howard Hughes).

And some estate battles are so classically obvious—old rich man, vivacious model, jilted family—they end up as textbook cases, literally. Playboy Playmate Anna Nicole Smith’s battle to keep the fortune of her late husband, Texas oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall II, ended up gracing the pages of the widely used textbook “Wills, Trusts and Estates.”

And that wasn’t the end of Smith’s unlikely influence on law students. After she died in 2007, her poorly drafted will and the court dispute over her body served as teachable moments for law professors as well.

Here are 8 Big Estate Battles of the Rich and Famous:
Continue reading HERE and find all eight all examples